Thu Nov 6 23:06:57 2008

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RSL takes advantage into second leg vs. Chivas USA

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Carson, CA (Sports Network) - Real Salt Lake is coming off the Major League Soccer franchise's first-ever playoff win in its first-ever playoff game, 1-0, vs. Chivas USA at Rio Tinto Stadium last Saturday thanks to a 90th minute Yura Movsisyan goal.

"It's huge for the club, huge for us because now we are a goal ahead going into our second leg which relieves a lot of pressure, you know," Movsisyan told SportsNetwork.com earlier this week. "It was big for us because anything but a win in that game would have been a disappointment."

The 21-year-old Movsisyan is coming off back-to-back games in which he scored huge 90th minute goals after his equalizer at Colorado on Oct. 25 earned RSL's playoff berth.

Now, RSL will be looking to earn at least a draw on the road at The Home Depot Center vs. Chivas USA on Saturday in an effort to advance to the Western Conference Final vs. the winner of the Houston/New York series.

"We are in a situation where we need a tie or a win, like we needed in Colorado," Movsisyan said. "We just have to start the game the same way like we started [the first leg]. We can't go there and sit back and wait for the 90 minutes to run out because it won't. Chivas is a good team, they play good soccer, they have really good attacking players. They have a very good team and if we hand them the game they will take it and run with it. We have to make it as hard as possible and try to get a goals if we can."

Chivas USA, the Western bracket's No. 2 seed, will aim to avoid being upset in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight year after losing to Kansas City last season.

"We're in the same spot as we were last year. We're going home and hopefully this time it will be a little different for us," Chivas USA coach Preki said. "Even if it was 0-0 here we'd have to go home and win, so we have to win no matter what."

The Goats have gone 382 minutes without a goal in MLS Cup Playoffs action, a span that has seen the club shut out in four consecutive playoff fixtures, something the team must correct to advance to the Western final.

"The only thing we need to do is play our game, try to create as many chances as we can early on in the game against Salt Lake at home," Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan said. "That's all we can ask for."

Chivas could get a boost with a few of its injured players returning. Forward Alecko Eskandarian, midfielders Atiba Harris and Sasha Victorine and defender Claudio Suarez could all return after missing the first leg.

"Hopefully next weekend we'll get some guys back, get our regular lineup going, but there are no guarantees," Kljestan said.

Chivas USA will also get goalkeeper Dan Kennedy back after he served a one- game suspension, but his replacement, Zach Thornton, did a very respectable job in relief.

"I thought Zach was solid," Preki said. "He made some big saves for us and kept us in the game on a couple of occasions."

No matter who is on the field, there figures to be a lot more action before this series is all said and done.

"I think that our group has to feel very confident in themselves right now. I think that our group also needs to be brought down to the ground a little bit and realize that it is going to take a whole lot of work next weekend to complete the series," RSL coach Jason Kreis told SportsNetwork.com this week. "It is certainly anywhere but near completed."